FUNDAMENTAL ACTIVITIES OF DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
The digestive system uses mechanical and chemical activities to break food down into absorbable substances during its journey through the digestive system.

DIGESTIVE PROCESS
The processes of digestion include six activities: indigestion, propulsion, mechanical or physical digestion, chemical digestion, absorption, and defecation.
The first of these processes, indigestion, refers to the entry of food into the alimentary canal through the mouth. There, the food is chewed and mixed with saliva, which contains enzymes that begin breaking down the carbohydrates in the food plus some lipid digestion via lingual lipase. Chewing increases the surface area of the food and allows an appropriately sized bolus to be produced.

Food leaves the mouth when the tongue and pharyngeal muscles propel it into the esophagus. This act of swallowing, the last voluntary act until defecation, is an example of propulsion, which refers to the movement of food through the digestive tract. It includes both the voluntary process of swallowing and the involuntary process of peristalsis. Peristalsis consists of sequential, alternating waves of contraction and relaxation of alimentary wall smooth muscles, which act to propel food along . These waves also play a role in mixing food with digestive juices. Peristalsis is so powerful that foods and liquids you swallow enter your stomach even if you are standing on your head.
Digestion includes both mechanical and chemical processes. Mechanical digestion is a purely physical process that does not change the chemical nature of the food. Instead, it makes the food smaller to increase both surface area and mobility. It includes mastication, or chewing, as well as tongue movements that help break food into smaller bits and mix food with saliva. Although there may be a tendency to think that mechanical digestion is limited to the first steps of the digestive process, it occurs after the food leaves the mouth, as well. The mechanical churning of food in the stomach serves to further break it apart and expose more of its surface area to digestive juices, creating an acidic “soup” called chyme. Segmentation, which occurs mainly in the small intestine, consists of localized contractions of circular muscle of the muscularis layer of the alimentary canal. These contractions isolate small sections of the intestine, moving their contents back and forth while continuously subdividing, breaking up, and mixing the contents. By moving food back and forth in the intestinal lumen, segmentation mixes food with digestive juices and facilitates absorption.
In chemical digestion, starting in the mouth, digestive secretions break down complex food molecules into their chemical building blocks (for example, proteins into separate amino acids). These secretions vary in composition, but typically contain water, various enzymes, acids, and salts. The process is completed in the small intestine.
Food that has been broken down is of no value to the body unless it enters the bloodstream and its nutrients are put to work. This occurs through the process of absorption, which takes place primarily within the small intestine. There, most nutrients are absorbed from the lumen of the alimentary canal into the bloodstream through the epithelial cells that make up the mucosa. Lipids are absorbed into lacteals and are transported via the lymphatic vessels to the bloodstream (the subclavian veins near the heart) In defecation, the final step in digestion, undigested materials are removed from the body as feces.
Digestive System: From Appetite Suppression to Constipation
Age-related changes in the digestive syste99m begin in the mouth and can affect virtually every aspect of the digestive system. Taste buds become less sensitive, so food isn’t as appetizing as it once was. A slice of pizza is a challenge, not a treat, when you have lost teeth, your gums are diseased, and your salivary glands aren’t producing enough saliva. Swallowing can be difficult, and ingested food moves slowly through the alimentary canal because of reduced strength and tone of muscular tissue. Neurosensory feedback is also dampened, slowing the transmission of messages that stimulate the release of enzymes and hormones.
Pathologies that affect the digestive organs—such as hiatal hernia, gastritis, and peptic ulcer disease—can occur at greater frequencies as you age. Problems in the small intestine may include duodenal ulcers, maldigestion, and malabsorption. Problems in the large intestine include hemorrhoids, diverticular disease, and constipation. Conditions that affect the function of accessory organs—and their abilities to deliver pancreatic enzymes and bile to the small intestine—include jaundice, acute pancreatitis, cirrhosis, and gallstones.
AYURVEDA IN DIGESTION
In Ayurveda, agni (fire) is viewed as the source of life.
It’s literally the gatekeeper of good health and a metaphor for all metabolic functions in the body. Everything you eat is looked upon as an offering to agni — and what’s a more potent, direct offering than food?
What you eat can nourish and strengthen this fire, boosting your digestive system — or it can smother it, leading to an impaired, weakened, or imbalanced agni.
According to Ayurveda, harmful foods, such as fried foods, processed meats, and very cold foods, can create undigested residue that forms toxins, or in Ayurvedic terms “ama.” Ama is described as the root cause of disease.
So, the health goal is to balance this metabolic fire. When it comes to good eating habits, here’s the best advice most Ayurvedic practitioners give:

• Eat only when hungry.
• Keep gaps of at least three hours between meals, so the previous meal is digested.
• Avoid smothering agni with cold, wet, spicy, oily, and fried food.

“A diet of light simple foods is the best. Alkalis help regulate this gastric fire. Ghee stimulates agni and improves digestion. Proper chewing is essential to good digestion, too."
Constipation? Drink ghee, salt, and hot water
“Consume a drink made with ghee, salt, and hot water. Ghee helps lubricate the inside of the intestines and salt removes bacteria,”
Bloated? Try Warm Water & Fennel Seeds Or Ginger
Basically Anything Taken With Warm Water Can Help Bloating
If You Dont Want To Prepare A Hot Drink,Chewing On Fennel Seed After eating Can Aid Digestion Process & Reduce
Gas & Bloating. If You Are A Tea Drinker,Reach For Mint Tea Or Fennel Tea To Help With Bloat.
Acid reflux? Fennel seeds, holy basil, and other spices may do the trick
“Pop some saunf (fennel seeds), tulsi leaves (holy basil), or a spice like clove in your mouth and chew slowly Anything that increases saliva in the mouth can help balance the stomach acidity.
According to Ayurveda, buttermilk soothes the stomach, aids digestion, and reduces irritation in the stomach lining that causes acid reflux.
Diarrhea? Eat gourds and keep hydrating
“Bottle gourd (calabash) is excellent for diarrhea. You can turn it into a soup, a curry made with tomatoes, or a stew, and eat it with rice “[This specialty produce] has a lot of fiber and water content, and is easy to digest, low in calories, and light on the stomach It’s important to avoid dehydration when you have diarrhea, so drink a lot of fluids, more than you normally would.
Plain water is best, but you can also try buttermilk or fruit juice especially apple and pomegranate or ginger tea. Ginger stimulates digestionTrusted Source and is full of antioxidantsTrusted Source that rehydrate the body and replenish lost nutrients.Ginger is a great remedy for healing diarrhea.
“According to Ayurveda, if someone has diarrhea it is not good to stop it immediately by giving medicines
Indigestion? Cooked veggies and soupy dishes may help
If your stomach is upset, check to see what you’ve eaten over the last 24 to 48 hours and “find a counterbalance
If afflicted with indigestion, avoid dairy or big grains (rice), raw vegetables, and anything that makes the stomach work hard to digest it. “Have cooked vegetables that are steamed or stir fried, and only add spices that aid in digestion like ginger, cinnamon, black pepper. For meals, soupy and liquid-like dishes help,”
Juices are useful too.Take equal quantities of onion juice and honey or a glass of buttermilk mixed with a 1/4 teaspoon of garlic paste for relief.
If you have acid reflux, heartburn, or inflammation in the digestive tract, garlic and onion may aggravate it further. Be mindful of what foods work best with your specific body and needs.
The foundation of good eating habits

• Here are a few suggestions to follow, according to Ayurveda:
• Incorporate spices like turmeric, cumin, fennel seeds, coriander, and hing (asafetida) in your diet.
• Drink ginger or cumin tea once a day.
• Avoid ice-cold drinks or food.
• Don’t drink ice water as it slows agni and digestion.
• Don’t snack, if not hungry.
• Take small sips of warm water during a meal to aid digestion and absorption of food.
• Avoid contradicting food combinations, such as very hot and cold food or raw and cooked food together.
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